Death Saurer
The Deathsaurer (also written as Death Saurer) is a Dinosaur type Zoid, one of over 200 species of biomechanical lifeforms depicted by TOMY's Zoids model, toy, and media franchise. The Deathsaurer is the penultimate villain of the Chaotic Century ''and ''Guardian Force ''anime series, and plays a major role throughout the Battle Story. Overview The Deathsaurer is a Tyrannosaurus-type Zoid modeled after the fictional Japanese monster ''Godzilla, and is used by the Zenebas Empire, and later the Guylos Empire. The Deathsaurer is one of the most powerful Zoids ever to have existed. The Deathsaurer was developed as a counter to the Republic's Ultrasaurus, a Zoid that was considered to be unstoppable. To defeat it, the Deathsaurer was armed with a new weapon, the Charged Particle Cannon. This weapon, long considered to be one of the most powerful ever mounted on a Zoid, was capable of levelling almost any target in a single blast. No form of armour or defense was effective against this weapon. While other Zoids have mounted Charged Particle Cannons, the Deathsaurer's is still the most powerful. Additionally, unlike most other CPC-armed Zoids, the Deathsaurer does not need to be immobilised in order to fire its cannon. In addition to its powerful weapons, the Deathsaurer is also covered by some of the thickest armor on any Zoid. The Deathsaurer's armor was designed to defend against such weapons as the Ultrasaurus' quad 360 mm Cannons and the Gojulas Supercannons. The only weakness in its armor is the intake for its Charged Particle Cannon. The intake is less protected than the rest of its body, and is vulnerable to attack. Destroying it will expose the Zoid's power system to a direct attack. The Deathsaurer's only other weakness is the ponderously slow speed at which it moves, which makes it an easy target. Of course, its thick armor and powerful weapons mean that it can survive almost any assault. Battle Story appearances The Deathsaurer first appeared during the Zenebas offensive against the Republic in ZAC 2044. With the Deathsaurer's power, the Empire was able to steamroll the Helic army, destroying their capital and forcing them to retreat to the mountains in the far east of the continent. The Deathsaurer was simply unstoppable; there was no weapon that was effective against it. With each Deathsaurer being protected by dedicated escort of Lidiers and Reddras, there was no easy way to exploit its few weaknesses. The Republic began a program to overcome this failing, eventually resulting in the deployment of the Madthunder in ZAC 2048. The Madthunder force was used to counterattack the Deathsaurer force in the Republic's capital, and succeeded in defeating them. From there, the Republic drove towards the Empire's capital, capturing it in ZAC 2049. Zenebas' personal Deathsaurer was one of the first Zoids to face a Guylos Deadborder, being crushed by the latter's gravity cannons. The surviving Deathsaurers were integrated into the Guylos army and served as shock troops, but were destroyed in the meteor strike of ZAC 2056. In ZAC 2099, the Guylos Empire found the ruins of a previously unknown advanced civilisation on Mount Olympus, on the Western Continent of Europa. Inside these ruins was a Deathsaurer which, while damaged, provided them with enough information to reverse engineer its technology and begin limited production of it for their armies. They also developed a new Zoid from its systems, the Geno Saurer. In response, the Helic army began work on recreating the Madthunder. The two massive Zoids faced each other again in ZAC 2102 on the Dark Continent, the Helic Madthunders again triumphing. However, Imperial Regent Gunter Prozen had his own Zoid, the Bloody Deathsaurer. He used it to attack the Helic forces in the Imperial capital, before it was disabled by a Guylos Iron Kong. Mortally wounded, Prozen set the Zoid to overload and explode, destroying the city and the bulk of the two armies present. In ZAC 2230, the Zi-Arms corporation found the wreckage of a Deathsaurer. Using technologies developed for the Chimera Blox, they revived it in a new form, the Mega Deathsaurer. However, the Zoid went berserk and attacked everything around it, destroying the Zi-Arms forces. In the end, the combined power of the three legendary Tiger Zoids, Whitz Tiger, Rayse Tiger and Brastle Tiger was required to destroy it. Media appearances Anime The Deathsaurer first appeared in Zoids: Chaotic Century, as a major part of the central plot of the series. It is depicted as a truly evil Zoid with a thirst for death and destruction and a will of its own, able to possess the minds of lesser beings such as Prozen and Hiltz. In the past, before humans came to Planet Zi, the Deathsaurer had been created by the Zoidans and wiped them all out, with the exceptions of Fiona, Hiltz and Reese. After this, it was defeated by two unnamed scorpion zoids. As a part of his plot to take over the Guylos Empire and the rest of Zi, Imperial Regent Gunther Prozen revived the Deathsaurer and used it to attack the Imperial capital, and armies from both the Helic Repbulic and the Gulyos empire were powerless to stop it. The Zoid was destroyed by Van Flyheight's Blade Liger, exploding and apparently killing Prozen. In Zoids: Guardian Force, Hiltz planned to use the Deathsaurer, enhanced by the Zoid Core of the Death Stinger, to destroy all life on Zi. It was explained that while the core was genuine, the body of the Deathsaurer fought in the Imperial capital was a low-quality copy (albeit still nigh invincible). The core survived by fusing with Prozen, who had inexplicably managed to survive the destruction of the first Deathsaurer. The 'true' Deathsaurer was found at the end Guardian Force, having been locked in an ancient city, but was revived when Prozen and the Death Stinger's core were fused to create a new core for it. The revived Deathsaurer was much stronger than the first, leaving Van's Blade Liger and Raven's Geno Breaker unable to harm it. Even the Ultrasaurus's gravity cannon is unable to damage this Deathsaurer, and the Ultrasaurus was crippled by it. Using a large lens like object, Hiltz (now merged with the Deathsaurer's core), was able to use the Deathsaurer's charged particle cannon on target all across Zi. Fiona initially planned to destroy the Zoid Eve to stop the Deathsaurer (an event that would actually cause the destruction of all Zoids), but eventually came up with the plan of firing Van's Blade Liger out of the Ultrasaurus's gravity cannon to destroy the Deathsaurer. Before that happened, Raven discovered an energy shield around the Deathsaurer that he'd have to break down for Van's idea to work, and managed to do so even though it used all of the Geno Breaker's power. After being fired out of the gravity cannon, the Blade Liger successfully destroyed the Deathsaurer. Not physically but in more of a visual, the Deathsaurer's lone appearance in Zoids: New Century Zero is a super deformed version breathing fire (apparently intended as "animation within the animation") at the start of a news broadcast. The Deathsaurer is also mentioned in passing in some episodes; Doctor Laon boasts that his custom transport, the "Great Whale King" is as powerful as one, and Steve Tauros mentions offhand that his Hover Cargo's shield could deflect shots from a Deathsaurer's Charged Particle Cannon. Size Discrepancy .]] In the anime, the Deathsaurer appears differently to its Battle Story counterpart. The Deathsaurer is an ancient, powerful Zoid, responsible for the destruction of the Ancient Zoidian civilization. The anime Deathsaurer's size is expanded for dramatic purposes, but is also rather inconsistent. Sometimes, it is shown as closer in size to Godzilla, while at other times the Zoid is depicted as being closer in size to the battle story version. This is especially evident in the scenes depicting Prozen as standing on its shoulder. This feature is not unique to the Deathsaurer; many other Zoids are portrayed in the anime as being larger than their stats indicate. The animation model of the Deathsaurer also has somewhat exaggerated proportions; the Zoid's neck is longer and thinner than the model's, while the head is proportionally smaller, making it more closely resemble Godzilla than the model kit. Its claws are also elongated and razor sharp, as opposed to the blunt, squared off fingers of the model kit. Video Games The Deathsaurer appeared in the Zoids: Saga II as well as the prototype Death Meteor. It also fuses with Victory Rex to become Deathsaurer VF. In-game, it also features a 'Diffused Charged Particle Cannon', capable of hitting every enemy at once. This version of the charged particle cannon is also used by Geno Flame, Geno Hydra (and its variants), and Berserk Fury (and its variants). The bloody demon is a one-off kit and a winner of a Zoids custom contest and was then included in the Saga II video game. It was also issued as a gashapon included in the Whale King playset. Image:Saga_2_Death_Saurer.png|Deathsaurer Image:Saga2_Death_Meteor.png|Death Meteor Image:Saga2_Bloody_Demon.png|Bloody Demon Image:DeathsaurerVF.png‎|Deathsaurer VF The Deathsaurer also appeared in the Zoids VS series. It, along with it's variations Bloody Death Saurer and Mega Death Saurer (Referred to as simply the Megasaurer) appear at multiple points during the game, as an enemy in Battle Mode and both Mission modes. The player can only use the Deathsaurer and its variants in Vs Mode, because it cannot be bought in Battle Mode. To unlock Megasaurer, the player must enter a certain code; different codes also unlock Energy Liger and Liger Zero Phoenix. The Bloody Death Saurer appears as an opponent in Zoids Battle Colosseum, with Prozen piloting the Zoid. Trading Cards The Deathsaurer was featured in three out of the four Zoids Trading Cards releases; all except Zoids Scramble. Models Original Japanese Release *Assembly required. (Snap-together, no glue needed. Scissors or X-acto knife recommended for trimming off excess plastic bits.) *The model's colours are moulded into the plastic, and it does not need any paint. The Deathsaurer kit comes on five frames (one of which is a weapons frame also shared with the Red Horn, Sabre Tiger and Dimetrodon), along with a battery-powered motor with light, a clear frame, thirty-two rubber caps, a frame of washers, a rubber band, two small chromed silver pilots, and label sheets. The Deathsaurer is moulded in bronze, bright red, and silver, with silver weapons and a smoke-coloured canopy. The Deathsaurer’s construction is reasonably involved and complex, especially given the Zoids size. The Deathsaurer uses a pair of “C” sized batteries for motion. Once activated, the Zoid walks forwards, waving its arms, sweeping its tail from side to side, the jaws opening and closing and the fan on its back spinning. The Deathsaurer's eyes also flash on and off. Like several other Zoids of the time, the Deathsaurer could use a number of different optional weapons that were included in the Empire Customise Set. The Deathsaurer was released in 1987, and was produced up until about 1989. Original European Release A version of the Deathsaurer was planned for release in Europe in 1987-88, but was cancelled before it reached production. A single image of the Zoid exists in a TV commercial, depicting the model as being black and grey in colour with blue caps. It seems around 20 units were produced, as promotionnal items for the shops, packaged in white boxes. This version is commonly named Deathsaurus. New Japanese Release The Deathsaurer was re-released in Japan in 1999 in the New Japanese Release. This version had a different colour scheme, being black, dull red and silver, with light blue canopies and blue pilots. There were no changes to the design. Several chromed versions from independent companies were released. Clear Deathsaurer Often called "Crystal" by English-speaking fans, this version was available as a competition prize in Japan. It was moulded almost completely from clear plastic; only the pilot, motor, and caps were produced in the "NJR" colours. A total of one hundred were made in the begining. But soon after, another release of this Zoid was done in Singapour, and it became easyer to find one. Bloody Deathsaurer This limited edition version was released by Toy's Dream Project in 2003, with an estimated total of 3,000 released. The Zoid has been entirely recoloured in blood-red, black, and dull silver, with smoke-coloured canopies. A small modification has been made to the design; the lights now remain on instead of flashing. New American Release The Deathsaurer was released in the US as a FAO Schwarz exclusive in 2002. There were no modifications to the Zoid beyond the packaging. Hasbro had planned a wider release of the Deathsaurer in 2004, but the NAR was cancelled before the release occurred. Despite the model not actually being released by Hasbro, The Deathsaurer was released as part of the Hasbro Action Figures line. It featured a backpack with 2 spring-loaded missiles that could be fired. Mega Deathsaurer Prototype Supposed to be released in 2004, this model was only seen once. It is a white re-colored version with a special back part. It was also the reputed main antagonist in the Three Tigers story line and also featured in a video game. Present status of this model being made into production is currently unknown. Image:Mega1a.jpg|''Mega'' Deathsaurer Image:Mega1b.jpg|Special customized backpack Dark Deathsaurer A promotional kit used to advertise Takara Tomy's Dark Zoids Army. Present status of this model being made into production is currently unknown. External Link Toy Review *treswright.vervehosting.com *Japanese review (Translated) Category:Zoids Category:Godzilla-Inspired Zoids Category:Guylos Empire Zoids Category:Zenebas Empire Zoids Category:Tyrannosaur-Type Zoids